We’re getting married!!!

Casey and Bryan were both single and looking for love. Like most modern couples, they turned to online dating! They matched on Saturday, talked nonstop & decided to meet up for their first date the first chance they got, which was after work on Monday. Both still in their work uniforms and without pretense, they met up for what was supposed to be a quick drink. It turned into closing the bar down because they were having such fun! Although the August heat & humidity was making their hair frizz, their clothes stick and their deodorant pointless, they hardly noticed... they were too busy getting to know each other, laughing, playing darts (Casey stomped him hard on that), Ring Toss (he definitely took the cake on that one), dancing and singing with the music. They learned they shared the same secret talent: They both could raise their eyebrows independently!!! Neither had met anyone else who shared this fun quirk and they couldn't stop giggling while waggling their eyebrows at one another. The night ended with a sweet kiss and another date already planned on the calendar. The rest is history!

Bryan knew before the end of their first date that Casey was the woman he wanted to marry. As their love blossomed, he decided to propose on their one-year anniversary on their vacation with her family on Block Island, Rhode Island. Months before the trip Bryan & Casey's best friend, Alicia, went ring shopping. They had visited several places & looked at a LOT of rings but none of the rings had the "it" factor he was looking for until he saw a unique ring which reminded him of Casey. When the day of their anniversary approached, he kept the ring hidden in his ever-present fanny pack which he wore the whole trip. He thought his secret was blown when she went to take something out of the pack that day, but luckily he beat her to it & hurriedly said, "No, no, I’ll get it," & wouldn't let her open it up. Now to decide how & where he wanted to pop the question. The first few days of the trip were spent getting to know her family, going site seeing & spending downtime with Casey painting rocks they found on the beach & making friendship bracelets. They visited the Mohegan Bluffs, beautiful beaches & lighthouses. But when they visited the Sacred Labyrinth for the first time, he knew immediately... this was the place he wanted to propose. The labyrinth is a sacred place meant for reflection, meditation, prayer & gratitude. At the end of the curving circular labyrinth pathway, there is a bench surrounded by painted rocks. The idea clicked in his head. He had painted a rock their first day of the trip which said, "Casey + Bryan" & he decided they should come back & leave that rock at the Labyrinth. Over the week leading up to their anniversary, he had mentioned several times that they HAD to go back to the labyrinth to deposit his painted rock. Finally on the day of their anniversary, August 15th, he insisted that just the two of them go visit the labyrinth. They were able to squeeze in a quick trip before the professional family photo shoot happening on the beach at sunset. When they arrived, Bryan complained that the rock which he had been carrying in his fanny pack was weighing it down & getting heavy, so Casey offered to hold it. Without looking at the rock Casey began heading straight to the center to drop it off, but Bryan romantically suggested they stroll the labyrinth pathway, using the time to reflect on their one year together & talk about what they were grateful for & what they hoped for their future. He followed behind Casey with his hands behind his back, secretly holding the ring. He kept waiting for her to look at the rock he had painted but she never did. As they got to the center, Casey bent to put the rock down & he exclaimed, "Wait! That's the wrong side. You have to turn it over." When she turned over the painted rock, she discovered that on the underside he secretly had painted, "Will you marry me?" She turned towards Bryan to see he was down on one knee, arm outstretched with the beautiful, sparkling coastal blue apatite ring held towards her & asked, "Casey, will you marry me?" She laughed & said "Yes, of course!" Full of relief, they kissed & embraced before putting their painted rock at the base of the bench in the labyrinth, leaving a piece of them on Block Island forever. Now they had only an hour to get ready for the family photos & wondered, how will we tell the family?! When they arrived to Scotch Beach for the photo shoot they got an idea... they whispered their new secret to the photographer who agreed to help them out. At the end of the shoot, he gathered everyone around for "one more photo." He told everyone to get into a semi-circle, but quietly told Bryan & Casey to stand in the front. Before they joined, Casey turned towards the family & said, "Bryan & I have an announcement to make." As she turned around towards Bryan, he surprised her & the entire family by getting down on one knee & asking her again to be his wife. Everyone was full of surprise & joy as Casey again said "YES!!!"